Title: Nurse Found Guilty of Murdering Seven Babies in Disturbing Case
Subtitle: Lucy Letby becomes UK’s most prolific child serial killer in modern times
18 August 2023, 13:10 BST
Updated 5 minutes ago
A neonatal nurse at the Countess of Chester Hospital, Lucy Letby, has been found guilty of murdering seven babies, making her the most prolific child serial killer in modern times in the UK. Letby, 33, has also been convicted of attempting to kill six other infants between June 2015 and June 2016.
Throughout the trial, it was revealed that Letby deliberately injected babies with air, force-fed them with milk, and poisoned two infants with insulin. The nurse refused to appear in the dock for the latest verdicts, which were delivered over several hearings, and will face sentencing at Manchester Crown Court on Monday.
Letby broke down in tears as the first guilty verdicts were read out by the jury foreman on 8 August, after 76 hours of deliberations. She continued to cry with her head bowed as the second set of guilty verdicts were returned on 11 August. However, the defendant was found not guilty of two attempted murder charges, and the jury was undecided on further attempted murder charges related to four babies. The prosecuting team has requested 28 days to consider whether a retrial will be sought for the remaining six counts of attempted murder.
Described by the prosecution as a “calculating and devious” opportunist, Letby was accused of “gaslighting” her colleagues to cover her “murderous assaults” during the trial, which began in October 2022. The nurse’s actions came to light after a two-year investigation by Cheshire Police, following a sudden and unexplained rise in deaths and near-fatal collapses of premature babies at the hospital. Before June 2015, the neonatal unit reported fewer than three baby deaths per year.
While Letby’s defense team argued that the deaths and collapses were the result of “serial failures in care” within the unit, and she was a victim of a “system that wanted to apportion blame when it failed,” the jury ultimately found her guilty.
The trial, lasting more than 10 months, is believed to be the longest murder trial in the UK. As the judge discharged the jury, he acknowledged the distressing and upsetting nature of the case and excused the panel from future jury duty. Some jurors appeared visibly upset, and a family member of one of the babies left the courtroom when the verdicts on the remaining six counts couldn’t be reached.
Senior Crown Prosecutor Pascale Jones stated that Letby had gone to great lengths to conceal her crimes and deceive her colleagues, passing off the harm she caused as a worsening of each baby’s existing vulnerability. Letby perverted her knowledge and skills to inflict harm, grief, and death.
Letby is set to be sentenced at Manchester Crown Court on Monday, where the severity of her actions will be taken into account in determining the appropriate punishment for her heinous crimes.
Video caption: Watch the moment police arrest Lucy Letby at her home.
Video caption: Watch: Lucy Letby’s first police interview.
Written by Dan O’Donoghue, Judith Moritz, Lauren Hirst & Rachael Lazaro
BBC News